The Bangladesh Coast Guard (BCG) has seized a Panama-flagged commercial vessel and a Bangladeshi oil tanker for illegally exchanging fuel oil and evading customs duties at the outer anchorage of Kutubdia.
According to BCG media officer Lieutenant Commander Md Siam-Ul-Haq, the maritime law enforcement force also detained nine crew members of the Bangladeshi oil tanker on charges of unauthorized fuel supply. He stated that the BCG vessel Apurba Bangla was conducting a routine patrol in the area when it spotted the foreign commercial ship refueling from the Bangladeshi tanker.
The Panama-flagged vessel had collected approximately 356 metric tons of fuel oil from the Bangladeshi tanker, bypassing government regulations and causing significant revenue losses.
Legal proceedings are currently underway through the Marine Court under the jurisdiction of the Chittagong Port Authority.
